LAGOS, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Africa was declared free of wild
polio on Tuesday by the independent Africa Regional
Certification Commission (ARCC) for Polio Eradication.
Certification of the milestone, announced during a World
Health Organization (WHO) videoconference, means all 47
countries in the WHO's Africa region have eradicated the viral
disease that can cause irreversible paralysis. The last case in
Africa was recorded four years ago in northeast Nigeria.